- Report: #90468
Complaint Review: Cingular Wireless - Lubbock Texas
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Author Not Confirmed
Why?
Cingular Wireless
www.cingular.com Lubbock, 79424 Texas, U.S.A.
Phone:
800-331-0500
Web:
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Cingular Wireless Forced to pay for services NOT rendered Lubbock Texas
We signed up for Cingular service back in 10/19/2003. When we originally signed up for service it was in Lubbock. The Family Talk plan we have shows that we are covered for anywhere in the panhandle of Texas down to Dallas. We called and verified that service would be active for us here in Amherst, TX and they said shouldn't be a problem because we are in this Statewide plan.
Now that we're moved in and settled, we noticed that our service hardly ever works. We don't receive incoming calls and it is a rare thing indeed for us to get notices of Voicemail calls left. We have to turn off and on our phones daily, sometimes hourly, in order to get a signal.
We talked with someone in customer service that said this is because we don't have a tower out here!?? So that's why it never works. We can't get a discount on our bill because we were in Lubbock when we signed up for the plan that it's not their problem if service doesn't work, even though it shows this area to be part of our calling plan!!!
Her analogy was if it doesn't work in the basement, then you need to go upstairs to work. In other words, you can always use it in Lubbock (drive time 1 hour) when you come here, but we can't do anything about it not working in Amherst.
So ok, I can't break my contract without paying 150.00 in termination fees per phone, so I decided to downgrade my plan so I could just use it in the evenings and my daughter could use one for emergencies.
Now when we signed our contract, we signed up for Family Talk at 9.99 per additional line and 7 to 7 plan for 2 lines at the 39.99 per month special. The lady I spoke to told us that since the promotion has now EXPIRED, even though our contract STATES we get a 9.99 per phone family talk plan that we are no longer eligible for that if we change our rate plan!!!
So we are basically stuck with a contract for service we can't use without being penalized, stuck with a calling plan we can't downgrade (that we can't use) without being heavily charged, and obligated to pay a bill for services that are useless to us!!!! Please tell me that either these ladies I have spoken to are incorrect, that we have some protection to us in our contract as the consumer, or that we have some way of breaking our contract legally because our service doesn't work without being fined severely.
I would sure appreciate your help in this
Christine
Amherst, Texas
U.S.A.
Now that we're moved in and settled, we noticed that our service hardly ever works. We don't receive incoming calls and it is a rare thing indeed for us to get notices of Voicemail calls left. We have to turn off and on our phones daily, sometimes hourly, in order to get a signal.
We talked with someone in customer service that said this is because we don't have a tower out here!?? So that's why it never works. We can't get a discount on our bill because we were in Lubbock when we signed up for the plan that it's not their problem if service doesn't work, even though it shows this area to be part of our calling plan!!!
Her analogy was if it doesn't work in the basement, then you need to go upstairs to work. In other words, you can always use it in Lubbock (drive time 1 hour) when you come here, but we can't do anything about it not working in Amherst.
So ok, I can't break my contract without paying 150.00 in termination fees per phone, so I decided to downgrade my plan so I could just use it in the evenings and my daughter could use one for emergencies.
Now when we signed our contract, we signed up for Family Talk at 9.99 per additional line and 7 to 7 plan for 2 lines at the 39.99 per month special. The lady I spoke to told us that since the promotion has now EXPIRED, even though our contract STATES we get a 9.99 per phone family talk plan that we are no longer eligible for that if we change our rate plan!!!
So we are basically stuck with a contract for service we can't use without being penalized, stuck with a calling plan we can't downgrade (that we can't use) without being heavily charged, and obligated to pay a bill for services that are useless to us!!!! Please tell me that either these ladies I have spoken to are incorrect, that we have some protection to us in our contract as the consumer, or that we have some way of breaking our contract legally because our service doesn't work without being fined severely.
I would sure appreciate your help in this
Christine
Amherst, Texas
U.S.A.
2 Updates & Rebuttals
Christine
Amherst,Texas,
U.S.A.
No, I have gotten the solution
#2Author of original report
Fri, May 21, 2004
Actually, I did what a smart consumer would do when they aren't getting a response from customer service and managers lie about call backs...I filed a report with the FCC. I was contacted by a Cingular representative today who REALLY listened to my complaint and offered solutions that WORKED for me. I didn't get the run around, didn't get told "oh well, sucks to be you", I received real answers and a package that suited my needs for the duration of my contract. It's really just a shame that I had to go the route I did to get a representative with the company who really cared. I am not a customer who demands credit every month, I pay my bills on time, and understand the needs of a business and how it feels to be on the other end of the line with an abusive customer in your ear. I was polite, courteous and patient....until I had just had enough. So a word to the wise out there...if all else fails, contact the FCC, then the business in question (at least with cell phones and long distance carriers) are required to respond to your complaint within 45 days. So while I appreciate your candor and "frankness" in responding to my case, I think I found a solution on my own thank you!
Mike
St. Louis,Missouri,
U.S.A.
I have a point and a SOLUTION!
#3UPDATE Employee
Sun, May 16, 2004
I am sorry that you phone doesn't work in your new area. Sometimes this happens. Unfortunally there are not any carriers that can cover 100% of the country without ever losing signal. It's just not possible. The only way to get that is to have a Satilite phone and the cost of theose are about $300-500 per mounth for the service and about $4000 for the phone itself. Reguarding what you contract states. You are absolutely correct. your contract states that you get the $39.99 primary plan with a secondary plan for $9.99. Now with that in mind let take a look at what you just said and I quote.... "so I decided to downgrade my plan so I could just use it in the evenings and my daughter could use one for emergencies. " In deciding to downgrade you plan, YOU are changing the terms of your contract by choice. That is a promotion and it is available to you as long as you want it EXACTLY as it states in you contract. By choosing to change you plan, you are saying that you no longer want the PROMOTION that you signed up for. I don't want you to think that I am trying to be ingnorant with you, I know that what I have said above seems harsh but I needed to make a point first. I do, however, have 1 solution. I know that this seems like a pain to do but if you can find someone in an area (perhaps someone where you moved from) who need some phone, then you can do what called a "Transfer of Service Agreement". This is where they would agree to take over your account. Problem solved. They get service where it works and you get out of your contract.
